Cancelling your credit card may not stop charges

By Jack, on March 7th, 2012

Consumer World reports on a coupon book that offers a discount on the first issue if you agree to take more in the future — in other words a subscription. They give you chance to cancel each issue, but there is a cancellation fee. And they say, in the fine print, that if your credit card is expired or has been cancelled when they make a charge they will make it anyway!

Long ago I found out that cancelling your credit card does not stop the card companies from accepting charges that you agreed to before you canceled the card. People who could not cancel their AOL subs found out that cancelling the card did not stop the bills — and the interest and late penalties if not paid promptly.

What you have to do is cancel the subscription to whatever it is, and until that sticks, you have to take the monthly bill when it appears (you will get a bill even if the card is cancelled) and file a complaint, in writing, to have that one charge removed. (They may refuse to do it unless you show some proof of your attempt at cancellation).

This to me is a totally unfair practice. If you paid by check and cancelled the check before it got cashed, the bank would not honor it. The credit card companies should not honor charges after your card has been cancelled.